Published
20th May 2024
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Perspective News, The Cambridge Weekly
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The Cambridge Weekly –20th May 2024
Pluses and minuses
It has been a decent week for investors, with global stocks up around 1% from last Monday. British and European equities finished virtually flat, with the US and China slightly up. The gain for US stocks was not outsized, but it was enough to take the S&P 500 to a fresh all-time high last Wednesday. Breaking that record made a fairly average week for markets look like a great one.
China building a new world order, but still living in this one
Vladimir Putin’s visit to China last week has brought the Russia-China relationship into sharp focus. Just after the Russian president invaded Ukraine in early 2022, he and President Xi toasted the two nations’ “no limits” friendship. It was a signal of things to come, as much as a rebuke of Western sanctions. Economic and political ties between the countries have grown dramatically since, with bilateral trade reaching $240 billion last year, which is very considerable given Russia’s economy comparatively small size these days (for comparison: China trade with US is $575bn and over $800bn with EU).
